The Crucible- The Complete Series

by Odette C. Bell

  “Argoza,” I deliberately dropped my voice low, keeping it as calm as I dared, “you must let me out.”

  “No. You'll leave.”

  “Argoza,” my voice arced up, “we’ll die if you don't let me out. Let me out.”

  “No. Nathan. I… it's not meant to end like this. The Forgotten shouldn't have been in that cloud. I….”

  “Let me out. I can save us both. Just let me out.”

  I leaned closer to the shield, locking my hand tighter around the edge of my seat. “Please, please let me out.”

  She shook her head.

  Our ship lurched to the side again, and she was thrown against the shields. If they weren't unidirectional, she would have died.

  “Argoza. Just… I'm sorry. Sorry it didn't work out. But none of that matters now. The only thing that matters is if we survive.”

  “Nathan….”

  “Just live another day. Just live another day.”

  I didn't know what to say. Didn’t know what to do to make her let me out.

  As I repeated “just live another day” and I stared at her, something happened.

  In her broken mind something finally fit together. She pushed up.

  With an expression of immeasurable sorrow washing down her features, she turned. Her leg must be broken, because she couldn't stand. Instead she pulled herself across the floor, grasping the flight seat and yanking her body onto it. Her fingers darted over the tactical controls.

  A second later, my shield blinked out.

  She swiveled, eyes larger than I'd ever seen, and she stared at me.

  I darted past her and threw myself into the navigational seat.

  Our ship was doing an incredible job of keeping us out of the jumpers’ path, but we had to fight back.

  She still watched me. One hand locked on the armrest of her seat, her left leg held at an awkward angle.

  “Just live another day,” I found myself repeating, either for her benefit, for mine, or for Alyssa’s.

  Though our ship did have weapons, they were relatively rudimentary compared to what the Forgotten ships packed.

  The only reason we hadn't been obliterated yet was because our evasive system was top-of-the-line.

  We had to find some advantage. Now.

  Those three jumper ships were pushing in on us from all sides.

  I jerked my gaze up and locked it on the screen. The autopilot had maneuvered us away from the gas cloud, considering how treacherous space was within it.

  In a burst of inspiration, I overrode the autopilot, and directed us back towards the cloud.

  “What are you doing?” Argoza said through a rasp.

  “Maybe you're right. Maybe the Forgotten won't follow us inside that cloud.”

  “They came from that cloud.”

  “Yes. But my bet is they want to destroy us quickly and get back to the real fight.”

  “… What do you mean?”

  “The Forgotten are amassing on the Omega Sector. Every ship.”

  “Why were their ships waiting for us then?”

  “Maybe they got stuck in that cloud, or maybe they've been shadowing us. Or maybe they intercepted our communication to the Star Forces and tracked us down before we can do any more damage. The point is, if we run in the opposite direction of the Omega Sector, I don’t think they’ll follow.”

  “… You're going to leave her?” Argoza asked, voice barely above a whisper.

  I didn't turn to her. “No,” I said coldly. “I won’t leave the fight. I’ll just shake them off our tail.”

  Argoza said nothing. Instead she leaned forward and rested her hand on the piloting console.

  “What are you doing?” I snapped.

  “Helping you,” she said quietly.

  She’d kidnapped me, killed my father, and had been content on sitting through this war like a coward. But there was something about her defeated body language that told me she wasn’t lying this time.

  I'd also need another pilot on this if I wanted our already dilapidated ship to survive the extreme gravitational eddies within that gas cloud.

  “The three Forgotten ships are still on our tail,” she said.

  I darted my gaze up to the view screen and saw the telemetry of them pinning us in from behind.

  “Come on, you bastard, this better work,” I said under my breath.

  Our ship shot towards the gas cloud. It loomed on the view screen. Larger and larger. That constellation of glowing tendrils of gas stark and beautiful. On any other day I would have sat back in my seat and enjoyed the view. Now I crunched forward, muscles bent, crooked with tension, hands flying across the console.

  “30 seconds until we reach the gas cloud,” Argoza said.

  I clenched my teeth together, locking my jaw so hard I could have ground the bone to dust.

  “Come on, come on,” I muttered under my breath.

  “The Forgotten ships are closing in from behind,” her voice shot up high.

  “Come on,” I roared.

  We reached the gas cloud. We plunged into it. Immediately the view on the primary screen changed. It was as if we'd flown into the fibers of a blanket. Tendrils of gas in every color meandered around our vessel, amongst them sparks of light like stars trapped in a mesh.

  “The Forgotten are right on our tail,” her voice shot high.

  “This has to work!” I pleaded.

  I didn't have any other way to fight them.

  My whole body tensed as I waited for them to attack. In this gas cloud the evasive capabilities of our ship would be reduced to half. That would mean we'd be sitting ducks. One shot, maybe two, maybe three, and our vessel would explode.

  My heart vibrated in my chest. It felt as if it would shake free of my skin and bone and jitter across the floor.

  I waited. I waited.

  “… They're not following. They’ve peeled off!” Argoza lurched forward in her seat, eyes opening wide and locking on the screen.

  … She was right. God, she was right.

  “All contacts are disengaging,” the tactical computer said in an even tone.

  I shoved back in my seat, shook my head, and let out a whoop of victory.

  “You were right.” Argoza laughed.

  Yes I was, but we weren't out of the woods yet.

  I forced myself to snap back and hunch over the controls. “Our ship's still pretty damaged. We have to get out of this gas cloud as soon as we can.”

  “But they'll be waiting.”

  “We'll have to plan it carefully.” As I spoke, my fingers darted over the console. I brought up a map of the gas cloud, not of course, that you could map gas clouds. They moved continuously. It was like trying to chart a drop of water in an ocean. But I still had enough sensor data to predict the smoothest path through the cloud. “Here we go.” I stabbed a finger at the screen. “If we exit just there and immediately go to maximum beyond light speed, I think we’ll be able to get away from them.”

  “Think?”

  “I'm gonna try it.”

  She dwindled into silence.

  If I was smart, I'd put her in the cell.

  She'd already proven she wasn't trustworthy.

  … I didn't.

  I don't know why. Maybe I was giving her the same second chance life had given me.

  If I hadn't met the resistance, hadn't met Alyssa, I'd be dead by now. Dead and a goddamn fool who'd bought every lie the Star Forces had fed him.

  Wasn't Argoza just the same? A product of her situation? Maybe she just needed the same second chance I'd been given.

  Or maybe not.

  Maybe she’d turn against me again. But I’d be ready.

  I was keenly aware of her eyes on the back of my neck as I got up and shifted around the ship. Checking systems, doing whatever repairs I could until we burst out at the gas cloud.

  “What are you going to do with me?” she asked in a quiet tone.

  I got down on my knee, opened a panel, and rummaged inside, p
ulling up broken gel packs and replacing them with new ones I'd found in the maintenance locker. “I'm not going to do anything to you. But I am going back.” I flattened a hand on the side of the service duct, turned, and stared right at her.

  She dropped her gaze. Rather than say anything, she turned on her seat.

  The computer beeped. “Approaching allotted coordinates.”

  “Computer, run a diagnostic on system integrity. Can we head to maximum beyond light speed?”

  The computer paused. “Yes. We will not be able to sustain it for more than two hours.”

  “That's plenty.” I threw the broken gel packs into the now open cell. They smashed against the seat and oozed down the metal, pooling underneath it.

  I sat back roughly in my seat. I locked my eyes on the view screen.

  This was it.

  I was going to return to her. And if it was too late…?

  If it was too late, I’d do what Argoza and my father had insisted. I'd build a future. Not the one they wanted. One where we could all be free.

  …

  Alyssa Nightingale

  It was murder standing there in that valley alone, the endgame weapon silent behind me as it sat on standby. It was murder, because I could hear the battle but I still couldn't see it. I could hear the terrified screams echoing over my comm PIP and I could hear the greed of the Forgotten echoing in my mind.

  I was barely aware of my body in space. I stood, hands curled into fists at my side, feet planted firmly into the crushed rock below me.

  I'd activated my implants. They glowed around my elbows, giving my whole body an ethereal glow as that ordered pattern and yellow gold light moved around me.

  This would be the final time. Live or die, I wouldn't have my implants beyond today.

  So I brought them up. I turned my arms over, and I stared at my elbows in turn.

  I had joined the Star Forces to help. And here today I would fulfil that destiny.

  With or without him.

  …

  The Miracle

  The battle began.

  The Forgotten fleet came swooping out of subspace, blinking into existence in a wall of death.

  Every crewmember on the Miracle bridge tensed as fear ripped through them.

  They all knew the odds. No one would be walking out of here alive.

  This would be the end. They just had to hold on long enough to buy a new beginning for those who’d out live them.

  Captain H’agovan sprang to her feet, eyes narrowing on the Forgotten fleet.

  She didn’t need to give the order to attack. Her crew, made up of resistance members and Star Forces officers who’d pledged their loyalty, acted as one.

  She let her gaze dart across the view on the primary screen. There were hundreds of jumpers out there.

  Hundreds.

  Behind them was a wall of Forgotten heavy cruisers, and ensconced between was the largest ship she’d ever seen. A testament to death wrapped up in silver black metal. The Death Giver.

  H’agovan controlled her emotions. She didn’t let the fear washing across her bridge affect her. While every member of her crew stood in terrified awe at the sight that met them, she narrowed her eyes.

  She’d faced impossible odds before. None like this. But that would not matter.

  She took a controlled forceful step forward. “Begin the attack.”

  A wave of Forgotten jumpers sailed towards the Ra’xon.

  The Miracle’s shields already enveloped both ships and the station behind.

  “Increase power to forward shields,” she snapped. “Chief,” she stabbed a hand to her comm PIP, “release the targeting drones.”

  “Already onto it,” came the Chief’s breathless, hurried voice.

  One of the side holographic screens that floated around the main screen zoomed up to H’agovan , showing her a live feed of the station releasing the drones.

  There were thousands of them. Enough to pacify the pirates and the resistance.

  But here, today, they would save the galaxy.

  The outer station was a treasure trove of technology, and it would give them the edge. But that edge would not and could not last against the might of the Forgotten Fleet.

  H’agovan knew they needed back up. Backup that had not come.

  For the umpteenth time she checked the continuous communication feed she’d tapped into with her wrist device.

  Nothing.

  Not a word from Shepherd. Either he was dead and had failed in his mission, or he was late, which would amount to the same thing.

  The Forgotten had increased their communication dampening field, so there was every chance Shepherd had sent a message and they simply couldn’t receive it.

  It was a testament to how much of a threat the Forgotten were that they’d been able to adapt so quickly to the new communication method the Chief had created.

  The galaxy had never and would never again see a threat like the Forgotten.

  “Relay information from the tactical drones right to my personal device,” H’agovan ordered as she jerked her arm up.

  She checked once more for a sign Shepherd was on his way with the cavalry.

  Nothing.

  With a cold hard breath she realized she’d have to fight this on her own.

  …

  Annabelle Williams

  So close. So close. We could sense the technology down on that planet. We weren't afraid. We only felt greed. Righteous greed.

  I knew she was down there too.

  Alyssa.

  They were desperate to get their hands on her. It was like they viewed her as one of their own, a part of their twisted mind.

  Once they had her and obliterated all resistance, the galaxy would be theirs.

  … A part of me, a part of me was left. A part of me could feel fear. And that fear poured through my heart. It punched in and vibrated through my chest.

  It couldn't end like this. We didn't deserve an end like this. Even though the Star Forces had been brutal, even though the galaxy had only had a semblance of peace, we deserved another chance, didn't we?

  We all deserved another chance.

  …

  The Miracle

  The battle had heated up quickly.

  It was fraught.

  Different to every other skirmish they had ever fought.

  Their last stand.

  The bridge of the Miracle was already in disarray.

  The floor was cracked, broken gel packs oozing their contents everywhere. Cabling and insulation had tumbled from breaks in the ceiling, panels swinging back on their hinges.

  As Captain H’agovan strode past, she grabbed one such panel, wrenched it out of the way, and threw it at the wall.

  There was a gouge in her head, blood trickling down her brow, and her collar was singed from where a console had exploded in front of her.

  “Update on that Forgotten heavy cruiser?” she snapped as she strode over to the tactical officer.

  He, like the rest of her crew, were barely holding together. His arms were burnt from where a computer node had exploded in the floor. His hands shook, and yet they still flew over the console, his eyes wide as he stared at the primary view screen. “Its hull integrity is at 75%.”

  “And our hull integrity?

  “… 21%.”

  “Report on the other ships.”

  “The Ra'xon has multiple hull breaches, and the outer station has lost five sections.”

  “And we haven't even managed to take down one of their heavy cruisers yet,” H’agovan said.

  “… Captain?”

  H’agovan took another determined step forward, facing her view screen, angling her head down until she watched from under her crumpled brow. “Give it everything we've got. If we have to ram this ship right down the Death Giver’s throat. We’ll do just that.”

  Nobody questioned.

  They all knew what it would take.

  …

  The Outer Supply Sta
tion

  The Chief threw herself forward, bodily blocking an explosion before it could take out two of her ensigns. Though it burnt across her chest and took out a chunk of two of her arms, she grit her teeth, span on her foot, and threw herself forward.

  “How many sections remain?”

  “14. But the hull integrity of section 12 is down to 5%.”

  “Eject it.”

  “Aye.”

  “No, wait. Has that section got independent booster drives?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Then we'll ram it down their throat.”

  The Chief threw herself at the closest console, anchoring her body with one arm as her legs threatened to give way. As blood and sweat poured down her face, stinging her eyes, she crunched her teeth together.

  “This better bloody work.” She jolted backwards, jerking her head up to stare at one of the many independent holographic view screens that floated around the room. Or at least one of the ones that wasn't a broken sparking mess in the corner.

  She watched as the station's external camera showed section 12 disengage from the rest of the station. Then in a burst of light, it disappeared.

  Seconds later, it slammed right into the Forgotten heavy cruiser pounding the Miracle.

  “Direct hit,” one of the Ensign's called.

  “About bloody time.”

  “Their hull integrity is down to… 40%.”

  40%. 40 goddamn percent. She'd sacrificed a section of her ship and thrown it at that goddamn cruiser at maximum beyond light speed, and she'd barely dented the damn thing.

  She grit another hand onto the console before her for support, her legs wobbling to the side.

  … She was an engineer. She knew the odds. They were going to lose.

  Unless help arrived soon.

  No, now.

  “The Death Giver is headed for the Miracle!”

  The Chief jerked her head up, face paling, heart stopping in her chest. She stared at the view screen.

  …

  Alyssa Nightingale

  I stood there. Eyes closed. Wind buffeting my clothes and hair.

  I ticked my head to the side as their song roared in my mind.

  As I opened my eyes, I knew they glowed with power.

  My implants were on in full.

  Now I could see it. As I tipped my head back and stared at the sky, I could see the battle being waged above. Explosions, debris catching the sunlight.